


Cold Chocolate

by Erin_Oppel



Category: Wreck-It Ralph (Movies)
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Angst, Drabble, F/M, Grief/Mourning, Hurt No Comfort, Implied Relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-31
Updated: 2021-01-31
Packaged: 2021-03-17 07:21:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29096442
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Erin_Oppel/pseuds/Erin_Oppel
Summary: Everybody moved on except for Taffyta.
Relationships: King Candy | Turbo & Taffyta Muttonfudge
Kudos: 2





	Cold Chocolate

**Author's Note:**

> Just a short thing I wrote after seeing another sad pic on DeviantArt and ended up forgetting about it until now.
> 
> Setting is post-movie AU Sugar Rush where all the racers are adults.

Taffyta meticulously poured the steaming hot chocolate into the white ceramic mug, careful so as not to spill one drop. Her morning routine was so habitual that she didn’t even have to measure the amount of milk to add. She simply poured it from the glass jar until the frothy liquid turned a nice, rich colour. With one hand she gently stirred a spoon into the cup, while the other reached into a bag of mini-marshmallows that she had already opened.

“One, two, three…” she muttered, plopping the marshmallows into the mug as she counted. “…seven, eight.” He liked eight, for some reason. “Your chocolate is ready,” she announced over her shoulder sweetly. After taking the spoon out and dropping it in the sink—which was full of dishes she had gotten behind in cleaning—she picked up the mug and walked over to her living room.

She trod slightly, keeping her eyes on the nearly full hot cup. Taffyta set it down on the small, round coffee table that was made out of white chocolate. Without waiting for a reply, she strolled back into the kitchen to pour herself a cup. Hers was the same formula, only she didn’t like marshmallows—they always stuck to her teeth.

Her mind started to wander, mostly about him, and in her mental absence she spilled some hot chocolate over the edge of her mug. Blinking back to reality, she grabbed a dishrag and wiped the mess. Taffyta put a smile back on and went to the coffee table, determined not to break from her custom.

She settled down on one side of the loveseat and blew the steam off the top of her mug. She took a slow sip, savoring the warm, luscious beverage. She sighed pleasantly. Mornings when the arcade was closed and she could just relax and enjoy the day off with her best friend were her favourite.

Her eyes rested on the untouched cup on the table. She smiled again, this time more wistfully, and said, “Your hot chocolate’s getting cold. You’d better hurry up, old man.”

But she got no response. She hadn’t expected to. The house was so silent that faint engines could be heard from racers wanting to get an early start on their day. Taffyta glanced down into her pink cup and sighed. She had a feeling she wouldn’t be joining them today either.

They’d ask her what was wrong, and she’d say she was busy, or tired, or that her kart wasn’t working right. They knew, of course, the real reason for her reclusiveness. Her friendship with King Candy had been so obvious, but it was easier to continue making excuses than to admit the truth. The worst part was the pitying looks everyone gave her whenever they tried to get her to hang out with them. She could almost hear their disappointed comments after they’d turned their backs to her once she’d refused their offers.

_“Poor Taffyta, she’ll never get over him.”_

_“She really cared about him. What a shame.”_

_“It’s too bad she got fooled the most.”_

Taffyta squeezed her mug and cringed, willing the voices to silence.

But they were right: she had cared about him. She had been fooled. And here she was, pretending he was still around so that she had someone to talk to and drink hot chocolate with every morning, as if nothing had ever changed. It _was_ ridiculous, but she needed to do it.

She needed _him._

As much of a liar and tyrant and murderer as King Candy was, he had been there for her. He’d treated her with utmost respect and affection, and she’d harbored something of a crush on him herself, despite how much older he had appeared to be. Whatever his intentions were, she knew he would never do anything to harm her.

Taffyta finished her drink and put it down beside the mug that had belonged to her king. The marshmallows had dissolved and steam no longer rose from it. Her fingers brushed the smooth, white side. It was the only thing she had left of him. Tears formed in the corners of her eyes and before she knew it, she began to sob uncontrollably.

She buried her face in her hands, pressing her palms into her eyes in an effort to stop crying, but all it did was cause blue and yellow splotches to dance across her vision. It was no use.

He was never coming back. 

But the memory of him would haunt her for the rest of her life.


End file.
